“Hear my voice
Where you are
Take a train
Steal a car
Hop a freight
Grab a star
Come back to me
Catch a plane
Catch a breeze
On your hands
On your knees
Swim or fly only please
Come back to me…”
(Cherry Poppin’ Daddies – Come Back to Me)
I got the email notice from Microsoft that my Xbox360 will soon be coming back to me. They have done, whatever it is that they do to fix it. I mean from what I have ready, they have to replace some chips (i.e. the ones that burned out) and I have seen that they put in some “heat pipes” as to try to ensure that the replaced chips don’t burn out again.
I was very surprised when I checked my repair order the other day and saw that my beloved 360 had been shipped to a repair facility in Mesquite, TX.
This means that Microsoft’s Xbox Division/Group has worked out a system to handle the logistical nightmare of repairing what could eventually be 10 million Xbox 360s. I am not saying that they have gotten it all worked out.
I did a quick search and found that many folks have been without their 360s for weeks and months. And the fact that the repair center is in Texas, appears to be a lucky coincidence for me. As, it would appear that folks from Alabama, Ohio and who knows where. It would appear the the Mesquite, TX repair facility might be the only one around. I remember reading about how UPS had a specialized center setup for DELL, to handle some basic returns (like bad batteries, etc), if I can find the article I will post a link.
I also found another guy who had a similar experience, back in November.
Below is his timeline:
Here is the timeline of the repair process, I will keep updating as it progresses:
Oct 29 – Three Red Lights
Nov 4 6 PM– Entered request for repair on http://support.xbox.com/
Nov 5 12 AM – Got tracking number for return box
Nov 7 3 PM – Return box arrived at house
Nov 10 10 AM – Box picked up by UPS
Nov 13 11 AM – Box delivered to Microsoft repair facility in Mesquite, TX
Nov 14 6 AM – Microsoft acknowledges receipt of my 360
Nov 15 11 AM – Microsoft says 360 is repaired
Nov 17 4 PM – Box leaves Microsoft to return to me
Nov 20 7 PM – I picked up package from UPSAlmost exactly 16 days for the turnaround, which isn’t great but isn’t too bad either. Most of the time was waiting for shipping back and forth.
Here is my timeline thus far…
Jan 29 – 4AM – Red Ring of Death aka Three Red Lights
Jan 29 – 5AM – Registered 360 online and requested repair on http://support.xbox.com/
Jan 29 – 6AM – Received automated confirmation from Microsoft
Feb 3 – 2PM – UPS dropped off the box I requested be sent.
Feb 3 – 4PM – Dropped off box (containing 360) at the UPS store on 1431.
Feb 5 – 2PM – Received email stating repair facility has received 360.
Feb 7 – 6PM – Received email stating repairs have been completed and box will be shipped.
Feb ? - ??? – I receive my repaired 360.
That means that from the day it broke until the day it was repaired, was 10 days. From the day that I actually shipped it off to them, it means it was only 4 days. From the day that they received it until it was repaired, that is only 2 days. I will likely receive my 360 back on Tuesday at the latest Wednesday.
So, one thing that I will say after reading several folks stories had much longer wait times do the fact that they lived so far away from the Mesquite, TX repair facility. This in part is likely do to the “UPS Ground” shipping, it takes a long time. Unless you live in TX, because UPS Ground within the state of Texas, is like OVERNIGHT service.
I am looking forward to playing Fallout 3 again. I have been playing Fallout 2 here and there, but it just isn’t the same. I really miss the FPS view of Fallout 3.
Well, Gina is asking me what we are doing for lunch so I better get going.
Laterz